Question

A Long-Awaited Meeting

1 The werlach mother ship hung like a fabulous gold and crystal chandelier against the vast black curtain of space, silently spinning. I felt as if I were in a great theater, waiting for the lights to dim and the curtain to rise. Who knew what story might be told? As if on cue, the aliens’ transport shuttle detached from the mother ship and started toward our space station. I began to prepare the station crew to greet them.
2 The shuttle floated closer. “Something’s not right,” I muttered. “They told us that they were sending a delegation of over thirty werlach, but that ship is barely large enough to hold four adult humans. Gregg, did you calibrate our digital translators again? Maybe they mistranslated the message.”
3 “Yes, sir,” said Lieutenant Gregg. “I adjusted the translators, and they check out just fine.”
4 “Well, maybe what we thought was their shuttle is just a probe.”
5 “With all due respect, sir,” said Lieutenant Gregg, “what if we are looking at this from the wrong end? What if thirty werlach could fit in that ship?”
6 “Impossible,” I snapped. “You saw the pictures. These are big creatures.”
7 “Sure,” said Lieutenant Gregg, “the aliens look big in the video images we received. They are as tall as the trees around them, but how tall are those trees?”
8 “Sir, one minute until contact,” interrupted the watch officer.
9 We gathered in the official reception area and held our breaths as the aliens’ vessel docked with our station, gentle as a butterfly landing on a flower. The hatch portal unfolded like the delicate wings of an insect emerging from a cocoon. Indeed, a new age was being born with the arrival of this ship. Life would change for all of us, whether or not we wanted it to. A small platform extended through the hatch down to the deck. The aliens began to descend.
10 Gregg was right, I thought, chuckling to myself with quiet astonishment at the sight of the aliens. Thirty werlach can indeed fit inside that tiny shuttle, with room to spare. Suddenly, Petty Officer Chen gave a gasp and pointed—but not at the aliens. Tail twitching, Jeffrey the cat silently glided toward the shuttle. In about twenty seconds, he would make contact with the werlach. Earlier, the idea of Jeffrey and the aliens meeting would have made me laugh. Now, the idea made me want to scream.


Read these sentences from the selection, which help describe the setting.

The werlach mother ship hung like a fabulous gold and crystal chandelier against the vast black curtain of space, silently spinning. I felt as if I were in a great theater, waiting for the lights to dim and the curtain to rise. Who knew what story might be told?

The author uses figurative language in these sentences to suggest that —
A. the lighting in outer space is unusual.
B. the extent of outer space is enormous.
C. outer space holds glories and mysteries.
D. outer space presents dangers and risks.

Answer 1

C. The comparisons to a "fabulous gold and crystal chandelier" and a theater waiting for a performance emphasize wonder, spectacle, and the unknown—glories and mysteries of outer space.